Chapter 23

• Anastasia fidgeted with the buttons of her shirt, struggling to fasten them back in place.
• "I... should go," she stammered, yet deep down, all she desired was to bury her head in the crook of Sandro's neck, wrap her arms around him, and kiss him until she was utterly lost in him.
• She longed for him to hold her like she was something precious, something worth fighting and risking everything for. Yet, she recognized the feeling swelling in her chest, the unmistakable signs of what she had come to describe as Dependency. Her desperate need for even the slightest touch of affection from him made her feel like a leech, clinging to the warmth he offered.